Kindle Instinct. Amazon Game Consoles Rumors.

There is actually a bit more to the title's pun than meets the eye. Amazon has just purchased Double Helix Games, the video game company which resulted from a merger between The Collective and Shiny Entertainment (or whatever was left of them). Their most recent title was Killer Instinct for the Xbox One.

The Amazon Cauldron gag, now extra Shiny.

Snarkiness aside, the obvious question is: "Amazon, why are you purchasing a game developer?"

While Amazon is stating that they are simply building innovative games for customers, the rumor mill believes it is more than that. Beyond having an Android-based marketplace, various sources are reporting that Amazon is expecting to develop a sub-$300 gaming console based on that platform. It certainly sounds reasonable. It would give Amazon's video and audio services a controlled set-top box as well as a portal to their Android Appstore. Beyond that, it would not require much extra research and development. It would be a sensible next step.

That said, Amazon has already been developing games for a little while. Their current portfolio could easily be classified as, "2D". The acquisition of Double Helix could simply be a play for games with a little more... depth. Yes, I should feel bad for that pun. No, I do not.

Finally, all 75 of the employees will keep their jobs, according to TechCrunch. Their paychecks will now have an Amazon logo on them, and that is about it. Don't you love it when you can report on a merger or acquisition and not feel bad about it?

A $300 dollar android console really? Would that even make sense if you are charging 300 dollars for the thing I'm expecting something much closer to the ps4 in power than say the ouya. Is android even capable of managing that kind of hardware effectively? I'm not even going to question the issue of there not being any android games worth playing on a high powered box hooked up your tv as it seems like a chicken and egg scenario where you can't have one without the other.